Dog Training The Power Of Praise

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Dog Training The Power Of Praise

by John Gabriel

Dog Training ? The Power Of Praise

Much like people, our canine companions would rather be praised for their finer qualities than to be punished for their more ?fallible? actions. As a result, and in some cases contrary to proponents of strict disciplinary processes, such a notion might suggest an appropriate dog training program would include nothing but positive rewards??

But what does this mean? That the dog never gets punished? Well, sort of. You see, the dog won?t respond very well to punishment anyway?for the most part what really happens is the relationship between you and the animal gets hurt in the process. In other words, with regard to punishment, when the dog does something undesirable, you withhold praise?and that becomes the punishment.

However, when you?re dealing with an animal so eager to please and to be loved?with an animal so wanting to be a member of the family and the ?pack??with regard to an animal so driven by the pure pleasure of reward, then a simple rewards system promoting and encouraging good behaviors makes sense?yes?

Think about the possibilities here. Rewards can be administered in so many ways. Toys, bones, treats, walks, play time?the list goes on. Within reason, there are some considerations with regard to ?rewards?.

Consistency: When you are trying to positively-reward and reinforce a particular behavior with your dog, use the exact same reward technique over and over again each time the dog displays the desired behavior.

Immediacy: Timing is important. When you are trying to reward a particular behavior, you must provide the reward immediately so the dog can connect the behavior to your praise.

Variety: Try to use different type of rewards for different sorts of good behaviors. What I mean to convey here is that if you routinely give your dog biscuits each time you want to provide praise, I would venture a guess that sooner than later you are going to have an over-snacked, perhaps unhealthy, potentially obese, yet well-behaved friend to go along with you. Adding variation to their reward system will curb boredom, keep the program vibrant and help maintain the health of your dog, all at the same time.

And last, but never least, you must have patience. We all regress at times, and that goes just as well for our best of friends. Despite all of the efforts, on everyone?s part, there will be those days which we cannot escape?try as we may. Remember this, much like yourself, your most loyal companion would fare far better from a pat on the back than from anything else?even if they made an error. So when they do good, tell them they did great!

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John Gabriel writes articles about training dogs and other related subjects. You can learn more by visiting ... http://basic-training-for-dogs.blogspot.com